Balance
by Starrika
Summary: Formatting Error Fixed. Written for the axial tilt fic exchange on IJ. Usagi and Serenity are two parts to a whole. Mamoru can't love one without the other.


Sometimes, Usagi wondered if Mamoru loved her for who she was, or who she had been. When she remembered everything, when the past came rushing back to her, it seemed as if her heart had overflowed with love. Then, when she came to know Mamoru, and not just the reincarnation of Endymion or the dreamy Tuxedo Kamen, she loved him more.

There was another crash of thunder. Usagi pulled the covers up to her chin, sitting in the corner against the wall of Mamoru's bed. She wished she'd brought Luna. She wasn't sure when Mamoru would be home. She _hated_ storms.

She bit her lip at a flash of lightning, tensing in anticipation of the clap of thunder.

It seemed like she had been waiting hours when she finally heard the key turn in the lock during a lull in the storm.

"Usako, are you here?"

"In your bedroom," she replied, slightly embarrassed by the hitch in her voice. She couldn't help being terrified by storms, but she still hated that they made her want to cry. What if Mamoru decided one day that she acted too much like a child? That he loved Serenity, but not Usagi?

Mamoru came into the bedroom, setting his bag over by his desk. His hair was wet with the rain, and he looked concerned."What's wrong?" He slid into the bed next to her, draping an arm around her shoulders.

Usagi leaned her head against his shoulder, inhaling the familiar scent of his cologne. "I had a fight with Rei."

Mamoru kissed the top of her head before resting his own on hers. "A real fight or a you-and-Rei fight?"

"A real one," Usagi replied, another hitch in her voice. "It was about the Shitennou. And us," she added after a pause.

"She thinks that we only love each other because of the past and that I don't love you, Chiba Mamoru, and that the Shitennou should never have been resurrected." 

It took Mamoru a moment to process what Usagi had blurted out so quickly. "It sounds like she's scared, Usa," he said thoughtfully. "We knew the Senshi wouldn't be happy we resurrected the Shitennou."

"I know," Usagi said. She shut her eyes tight to keep from crying. "But she didn't have to be so mean about it."

"I know. But that's Rei," Mamoru said. "She gets mad so you can't tell that she's scared. Remember when her grandfather was in the hospital?"

"Yeah," Usagi replied softly. "And I know Jadeite tried to talk to her yesterday."

"I would definitely say she's scared, Usa. And she probably is a little mad at us. But I don't think she meant what she said," Mamoru said, dropping another kiss on the top of her head. 

"Not even that you don't really love me?" Usagi said in a small voice. 

"Usako," Mamoru said softly, shifting so that she was looking up at him. He tightened his arm around her. "I love you because you are Serenity, but only because Serenity is a part of you. I'm not just Endymion or Chiba Mamoru, I'm both. It's Usagi who tries to make me cupcakes on my birthday and burns them, who beats me at every game in the arcade, and who is the person who knows me best. I love you, which means I love all of you, not just part."

He kissed her cheek. "Besides, if I just loved Serenity, do you think I'd let your dad terrorize me?" he teased.

Usagi giggled. "He is _starting_ to like you. He's stopped threatening to move to Osaka, at least. And he did extend my curfew to midnight."

"Does he know you're here?" Mamoru asked, glancing at the clock. It had been eleven when he had returned from the library.

"I told Mama I was spending the night at Mako's."

Mamoru grinned, falling over to lay flat on the bed, his grip on Usagi pulling her with him. "I missed you."

Usagi kissed him. "I missed you, too." 

They were silent for a few moments, occupied with exchanging kisses rather than conversation.

Mamoru twined a strand of her hair around his fingers during a lull of kissing. "Rei will come around, you'll see."

"I know," Usagi replied, leaning down to kiss him again. "I love you."

"Me, or just Endymion?" Mamoru asked, mouth quirked in a half-smile. He looked teasing, but Usagi could tell by the look in his eyes he wasn't sure.

"You. Chiba Mamoru _and_ Endymion, silly. Did you think I'd be any different?" She kissed him again. 

"No. But I had to ask," Mamoru replied, wrapping his arms around her tighter and returning her kiss.

There was another clap of thunder, but Usagi was too preoccupied to notice.


End file.
